Written Answers Tuesday 20 September 2005

Scottish Executive

Ambulance Service

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-3027 by Malcolm Chisholm on 27 October 2003, what the fuel costs were for ambulance services in each NHS board area in 2003-04 and 2004-05.

Mr Andy Kerr: The Scottish Ambulance Service does not collect this information by health board area, but by operating division within its service. Health board area boundaries are not relevant to the ambulance service as they provide a national service.

  Ambulances also can be moved from one division to another to ensure that they are utilised effectively and to even out the mileage over the fleet.

  The figures by operating division are laid out in the following table:

  

Division
2003-04 (£000)
2004-05 (£000)


North East
407
426


North West
333
375


East Central
776
844


West Central
792
841


South East
585
651


South West
838
921


Other
194
205


Total
3,925
4,263



  Source: Scottish Ambulance Service.

Arts

Richard Baker (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to encourage performing companies to stage public performances across Scotland, particularly in the north east.

Patricia Ferguson: The Scottish Executive does not directly fund performing companies. It makes resources available both to local authorities and to the Scottish Arts Council to enable them to facilitate access to cultural activities, including the performing arts.

  The Scottish Arts Council provides core funding to 25 arts companies which have a touring remit. These companies tour across Scotland and beyond, and are broken down by art form in the following table.

  

Art Form
No. of Companies


Drama
14


Dance
3


Music
8


Total 
25



  For non core-funded companies the Scottish Arts Council has a number of funding streams which are specifically targeted to help with touring expenses. These funds are provided either by the Scottish Executive (voted funds) or the National Lottery, and are outlined in the following table.

  

Art Form
Fund
Total Fund 2005-06


Drama Touring 
Scottish Companies
£350,000 voted
£320,000 lottery


Drama
Cross Border Touring
£120,000 lottery*


Drama
Non Scottish Companies
£20,000 lottery


Drama
Scottish Unfunded Companies
£50,000 lottery


Dance
Projects and Touring
£150,000 lottery


Music
Tune Up
£200,000 lottery



  Note: *The Cross-border subsidy is a joint arrangement between the respective UK Arts Councils and the amount stated is the Scottish Arts Council contribution.

  Additional support for touring is also provided through the Scottish Arts Council’s more general budgets. The Scottish Arts Council has invested £2 million in the recent refurbishment of His Majesty’s Theatre in Aberdeen. It also provides core funding to the Lemon Tree Theatre (some £178,000 in 2005-06). In addition, the Scottish Arts Council funds North East Arts Touring (NEAT) to promote performing arts work in venues throughout the North East of Scotland and to support other local promoters.

Autistic Spectrum Disorder

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what research or data is available to assess the incidence of autistic spectrum disorder among the adult population.

Lewis Macdonald: The incidence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in adults in Scotland is unknown. However, a national database is presently being piloted in four areas by eCare and the eSAY project in the Scottish Consortium for Learning Disability. This will include information on the number of adults diagnosed with ASD and will form the basis for data collection and service planning for the future.

Autistic Spectrum Disorder

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what research or data is available to assess the incidence of autistic spectrum disorder among those sleeping rough.

Malcolm Chisholm: No data is collected at a national level relating to the incidence of autism spectrum disorder among people sleeping rough.

  The Scottish Executive funds Glasgow Homelessness Network to collect data from organisations providing services to rough sleepers across Scotland. Whilst this provides information about the physical and mental health of rough sleepers, and whether they are registered disabled, it does not include specific information on autism spectrum disorder.

  Regarding the collection of data on the incidence of autism spectrum disorder more generally, I refer to Lewis Macdonald’s response to the answer to question S2W-19055 on 20 September 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Children’s Hearing System

Mr Stewart Maxwell (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the current gender balance is of the volunteers who make up the Children’s Hearing System.

Robert Brown: As at 9 September 2005, the total number of children’s panel members in Scotland was 2,469, of which 1,463 (59%) were female and 1,006 (41%) male.

  The total number of ministerial appointees to Children’s Panel Advisory Committees as at 9 September 2005 was 179, of which 131 (73%) were female and 48 (27%) male.

Children’s Hearing System

Mr Stewart Maxwell (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the gender balance has been of those who volunteered to become members of the children’s panel system in each of the last five years.

Robert Brown: Table 1 shows the gender balance of respondents to the annual national children’s panel recruitment campaign in each of the last five years. Table 2 shows the gender balance of those appointed by Scottish ministers to children’s panels in each of the last five years. Table 3 shows the gender balance of those appointed by Scottish ministers to Children’s Panel Advisory Committees in each of the last five years.

  Table 1. Responses to Annual National Children’s Panel Recruitment Campaign

  

Year
Male
Female
Total


Number
Percentage
Number
Percentage


2000
390
(27%)
1,070
(73%)
1,460


2001
334 
(30%)
771
(70%)
1,105


2002
938
(23%)
3,195
(77%)
4,133


2003
1,118
(30%)
2,698
(70%)
3,816


2004
872
(28%)
2,198
(72%)
3,072



  Table 2. Appointments Made to Children’s Panel

  

Year
Male
Female
Total


Number
Percentage
Number
Percentage


2000
145
(33%)
298
(67%)
443


2001
182
(39%)
283
(61%)
465


2002
222
(38%)
357
(62%)
579


2003
239
(39%)
369
(61%)
608


2004
212
(41%)
308
(59%)
520



  Table 3. Appointments Made to Children’s Panel Advisory Committees (CPACs)

  

Year
Male
Female
Total


Number
Percentage
Number
Percentage


2000
8
(42%)
11
(58%)
19


2001
10
(59%)
7
(41%)
17


2002
7
(30%)
16
(70%)
23


2003
16
(55%)
13
(45%)
29


2004
8
(47%)
9
(53%)
17

Civil Servants

Mr Andrew Welsh (Angus) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many civil service jobs have been lost in Angus in the last 15 years.

Mr Tom McCabe: Information on the location of civil service jobs within the Scottish Executive administration prior to 2000 is not held centrally. Since 2000, 20.5 full-time equivalent posts have been lost from Scottish Executive departments and agencies in Angus*. Details of civil service posts in other Government Departments located in Scotland are not held by the Scottish Executive.

  Note: *Refers to the local authority area of Angus.

Council Tax

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on the take-up of council tax benefit by pensioners and what representations it has made to the UK Government on the matter.

George Lyon: Over half a million households in Scotland currently receive council tax benefit, representing almost one quarter of all households in the country. Over half of all council tax benefit recipients are pensioners.

  The Scottish Executive liaises regularly with officials in the Department for Work and Pensions regarding council tax benefit take-up which is a reserved matter.

Crime

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many crimes associated with bogus callers targeting homes have been reported in each year since 2000 in each (a) police force and (b) local authority area and how many have resulted in successful prosecutions.

Cathy Jamieson: Neither the recorded crime nor the court proceedings statistics held centrally contain information which would enable figures to be provided at the level of detail requested.

Digital Technology

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will guarantee broadband access to the community of Ewes, near Langholm, by the end of 2005.

Tavish Scott: The Executive’s aim is to allow broadband access in all Scottish communities, and to this end we have a contract with BT to enable 378 exchanges to deliver ADSL broadband by the end of this year. We are working with BT to identify communities with access problems with a view to implementing solutions appropriate to demand.

  The Langholm exchange is broadband-enabled and to date BT is aware of only one failed order locally. If evidence of a community cluster of failed orders emerges, then we shall be happy to investigate.

Digital Technology

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether grants are available to assist communities or individuals to gain satellite or wireless access to broadband in locations where the exchange will not support ADSL broadband.

Tavish Scott: BT confirms that all its exchanges are capable of supporting ADSL broadband. The Executive has a contract with BT to upgrade 378 exchanges to provide broadband by the end of the year. We are working with the company to identify communities with broadband access problems and to implement solutions appropriate to demand.

  In addition, advice on broadband access is available to businesses through their local enterprise company, along with general business support.

Direct Payments

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what amount has been paid out in direct payments under section 7 of the Community Care and Health (Scotland) Act 2002 in (a) 2004-05 and (b) so far in 2005-06 (i) in total and (ii) broken down by local authority area.

Lewis Macdonald: I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-18998 on 16 September 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Doctors

Mrs Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans have been made to ensure that junior doctors in Scotland are guaranteed employment in Scotland.

Mr Andy Kerr: The training of doctors is a continuous process from medical school graduation through the training grades to consultant or general practitioner level. To make the most appropriate use of the training capacity in NHSScotland the number of opportunities across the medical training grades must be broadly in balance with each other and ultimately aligned to meet the service needs for consultants and general practitioners.

  Workforce planning determines the number of training places in Scotland required both for the longer term and for the immediate transition to new training arrangements under the initiative Modernising Medical Careers (MMC.) The aim is to ensure that those doctors currently in the system in Scotland have every opportunity to remain here. In determining the detailed transitional arrangements for MMC, we are therefore considering Scotland’s current pool of junior doctors to ensure that these arrangements make best use of the range of selection options which may be available, both for the training posts we have/need and the junior doctors who currently occupy them. Transitional arrangements are critical to avoid gaps in the medical workforce, future medical shortages and also over supply of trainee doctors in relation to available posts.

  The fundamental reform of postgraduate medical training, Modernising Medical Careers, has now commenced on a UK-wide basis. New two-year Foundation Programme appointments for graduates have been introduced and will be followed by specialty training programmes to train doctors to a level where they are eligible for appointment as a consultant or general practitioner.

Doctors

Mrs Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the transition into the Modern Medical Careers System from the current system of senior house officer (SHO) posts will be a smooth one, given that those SHOs who have been able to secure a post under the current system by August 2007 will be in competition with those emerging from the new training programme for entry into the new specialist training programmes.

Mr Andy Kerr: The Executive is committed to redesigning services and developing the workforce to deliver the health improvements and healthcare services that Scotland deserves.

  Modernising Medical Careers (MMC) is a UK initiative which the Scottish Executive fully supports. The Executive is working with NHS boards and NHS Education for Scotland in planning the implementation of MMC in Scotland, which includes arrangements for smooth transition from the current system. The number of places and detailed selection arrangements for the new MMC specialty training programmes have yet to be determined. The Executive’s plans will include consideration of the range of potential selection and entry arrangements to ensure that they are appropriate to junior doctors competing for entry to these programmes from both MMC and pre-MMC training positions, and will incorporate transitional arrangements. The new competency-based approach of MMC will give due recognition to clinical experience acquired during training.

Drug Misuse

Miss Annabel Goldie (West of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidelines have been issued to schools in respect of dealing with cannabis usage in the vicinity of schools.

Miss Annabel Goldie (West of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to address the issue of cannabis usage in the vicinity of schools.

Peter Peacock: In schools, teachers are aware of the need to be alert to any possible drug misuse. The Guidelines for the Management of Incidents of Drug Misuse, issued in June 2000, provides head teachers and other school staff with guidance on responding to information, allegation or evidence that children are misusing drugs within the school premises or grounds. It sets out action that should be taken in schools if a young person is found in possession of drugs, is suspected of intending to supply drugs, or suspected of being under the influence of drugs. This includes involving the police, social work and parents.

  Directors of Education, the independent sector and health and further education colleges have also been advised of the range of materials used in the Executive’s "Know the Score" drugs communication campaign. These materials include a booklet on cannabis, as well as other resources which give information about the drug. Schools and colleges will require to consider the suitability of these materials when planning their drug education programmes for young people.

Employment

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any targets for altering the proportion of people over 65 in employment and, if so, what these targets are.

Allan Wilson: Employment policy is reserved to the UK Government. The Scottish Executive has no such targets.

Environment

Rosie Kane (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to deploy continuously recording instruments for particulate sulphate, in light of the report of the Air Quality Expert Group on Particulate Matter in the United Kingdom.

Rosie Kane (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to deploy continuously recording nitrate monitors, in light of the report of the Air Quality Expert Group on Particulate Matter in the United Kingdom.

Rosie Kane (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to expand the current monitoring regime for black carbon and for additional continuous monitors to be deployed at urban background, kerbside and roadside sites, in light of the report of the Air Quality Expert Group on Particulate Matter in the United Kingdom.

Rosie Kane (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to carry out continuous monitoring of elemental carbon at urban, roadside and kerbside locations in Scotland to check that the new diesel vehicle emission standards are having the desired effect in the United Kingdom, in light of the report of the Air Quality Expert Group on Particulate Matter in the United Kingdom.

Rosie Kane (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to deploy continuously recording organic carbon monitors at urban background locations, in light of the report of the Air Quality Expert Group on Particulate Matter in the United Kingdom.

Rosie Kane (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to determine the contribution from secondary organic carbon to regional particulate matter background levels, in light of the report of the Air Quality Expert Group on Particulate Matter in the United Kingdom.

Rosie Kane (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to increase rural PM10 monitoring, in light of the report of the Air Quality Expert Group on Particulate Matter in the United Kingdom.

Rosie Kane (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to initiate rural PM2.5 monitoring to assist in the characterisation of regional PM2.5 background levels, the quantification of urban increments and the characterisation of PM2.5 episodes, in light of the report of the Air Quality Expert Group on Particulate Matter in the United Kingdom.

Rosie Kane (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to initiate daily monitoring of particulate iron, in light of the report of the Air Quality Expert Group on Particulate Matter in the United Kingdom.

Rosie Kane (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to initiate continuous monitoring of particulate sulphate, in light of the report of the Air Quality Expert Group on Particulate Matter in the United Kingdom.

Rhona Brankin: The Executive, in partnership with the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs and the other UK administrations, operates a comprehensive network of air quality monitoring stations across Scotland and the rest of the UK. Many of these stations monitor for particulate matter.

  We are currently considering the recommendations of the Air Quality Expert Group in relation to particulate monitoring, following publication of the group’s latest report. Any changes to the existing monitoring arrangements emerging from these considerations will be announced in due course.

Equality Strategy

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to develop a national race equality strategy encompassing all of its current race equality initiatives.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Executive has worked with a range of organisations and interests over several years to challenge racism and to promote and deliver race equality. Last year, the Scottish Executive conducted a review of race equality work in Scotland to determine how best to focus activity and support to deliver most effectively. I will be announcing the outcome of the review shortly, and identifying the approach we intend to take at that time.

Equality Strategy

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the role is of the strategic group on ethnic minority employment announced by the Minister for Communities in an Executive news release on 21 June 2005.

Malcolm Chisholm: The role of the strategic group will be to consider what action should be taken to address the current inequalities that exist for minority ethnic communities in the labour market in Scotland.

Equality Strategy

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) long and (b) short-term outcomes are for the strategic group on ethnic minority employment announced by the Minister for Communities in an Executive news release on 21 June 2005.

Malcolm Chisholm: The short-term outcome of the strategic group will be to produce an action plan to address the current inequalities that exist for minority ethnic communities in the labour market in Scotland. This action plan will identify what work needs to be taken forward to achieve the following long-term outcomes:

  Reduction of the minority ethnic employment gap.

  Elimination of the "ethnic penalty".

  Reduction in occupational segregation.

  Increased access to finance and business support services for minority ethnic entrepreneurs.

  Economic integration of new migrants.

  Working towards better inclusion of minority ethnic employees at every level of the workforce.

Equality Strategy

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many of its officials are currently devoted to working on the strategic group on ethnic minority employment announced by the Minister for Communities in an Executive news release on 21 June 2005.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Race, Religion and Refugee Integration Team within the Development Department’s Equality Unit is currently developing the framework for the strategic group, in conjunction with officials from the Development, Enterprise and Lifelong Learning and Education Departments, Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, the Commission for Racial Equality as well as other external organisations.

Equality Strategy

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many non-departmental public bodies have a specific statutory duty to promote race equality and what discussions ministers are having with those bodies without such a duty to ensure that they also promote race equality in their organisations.

Malcolm Chisholm: Approximately 265 devolved bodies are subject to a specific duty to publish a race equality scheme or policy. The Executive reviews the position annually in consultation with the Commission for Racial Equality.

  Almost 300 public bodies and approximately 1,500 community councils are subject to the general duty to promote race equality, and employment monitoring duties if they employ staff. Again, this list is kept under review.

Equality Strategy

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many of its departments have undertaken an ethnic impact assessment in the last two years, broken down by department.

Malcolm Chisholm: Departments are expected to consider the impact of their policies on race equality. Whilst many policy areas have taken account of the need to address issues of race equality, we have been developing more formalised mechanisms to undertake and record impact assessments. One formal race equality impact assessment has been undertaken on the Smart Successful Scotland Strategy and processes have recently been put in place which will ensure Executive policies are screened in a more systematic way for their impact or likely impact on the promotion of race equality.

  The Executive’s new Race Equality Scheme will be published at the end of November 2005 and will set out progress in departments on race equality, and the arrangements in place around consultation, impact assessment, monitoring and publishing.

Ferry Services

Brian Adam (Aberdeen North) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the reasons are for the subsidy to NorthLink Ferries for providing ferry services to Orkney and Shetland increasing from the planned £29.7 million to the actual £63.3 million between 2002 and 2005.

Tavish Scott: There are several reasons. The grant agreement of December 2000 between the Scottish ministers and NorthLink provided that NorthLink would receive a Base Annual Grant for each year of the contract towards the provision of the approved services. Those Base Annual Grant figures were expressed in April 2000 prices and the grant agreement provided that they would be re-valued annually to reflect inflation, using the Retail Price Index. The figure of £29.7 million quoted in the question is simply an addition of the first three Base Annual Grant figures at April 2000 prices and so takes no account of inflation since then.

  The grant agreement also provided that NorthLink would be entitled to claim additional grant reflecting material changes in certain costs such as harbour dues, staff costs and fuel prices which could not be accurately calculated at the time the contract was signed. The £29.7 million figure, again, makes no provision for these factors.

  NorthLink also advised the Scottish Executive that its business plans had been affected by a variety of other factors for which there was no recourse through the material change provisions in the grant agreement. These included: the commencement of a new, competing ferry service across the Pentland Firth in the period between the signing of the grant agreement and the start of the NorthLink service; the loss of Shetland freight business to a competing operator during 2002-03; delays to the completion of Scrabster Harbour which meant that the MV Hamnavoe had to be laid up for six months, and a number of additional cost factors which became apparent when the service came into operation.

  In order to keep the essential lifeline services operating, the Executive agreed to pay additional subsidy to NorthLink, over and above the contracted sums, but this was on the basis of an early re-tendering of the contract and the provision of the minimum support necessary to secure the continuity of the services.

Ferry Services

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much it has paid in subsidy to NorthLink Ferries to operate the Northern Isles ferry contract in each year since 2002, broken down by the nature of each payment.

Tavish Scott: The payments made to NorthLink in each year since they took over the contract, broken down by category of payment, are set out in the following table.

  

Category of Payment
Oct 2002 - Sept 2003
Oct 2003-Sept 2004
Oct 2005-July 2005
Total 
Oct 2002 – July 2005


Basic grant
£11,605,168
£10,702,000
£9,275,218
£31,582,386


Capital expenditure
£400,000
£400,000
£333,333
£1,133,333


Material change – staff costs
£828,615
£593,016
£491,778
£1,913,409


Material change – harbour dues
£1,758,368
£2,922,587
£2,298,050
£6,979,005


Scrabster Pier delays
£831,158
 
 
£831,158


Lease and loan payments
 
£4,149,377
 
£4,149,377


Additional funding
£3,000,000
£9,966,445
3,606,287
£16,572,732


Total
£18,423,309
£28,733,425
£16,004,666
£63,161,400



  The basic grant line provides the basic grant figures uprated for inflation (but for only a 10 month period for 2004-05).

  The capital expenditure line reflects the provision in the grant agreement to pay NorthLink up to £400,000 per annum in additional grant depending on the extent to which the aggregate capital expenditure related to the new vessels exceeded the grant agreement benchmark of £88 million. The actual capital expenditure incurred triggered this allowance in full.

  The material change – staff costs line records the payments made to NorthLink as a result of actual staff costs being higher than projected in the company’s bid. This provision stemmed from the fact that the previous operator would not release details of their staff costs to other bidders in the subsidy competition. From April 2004 the figures are notional as the support to NorthLink was provided through a single monthly payment without a specific sum hypothecated for material change.

  The material change – harbour dues line records the payments made to NorthLink as a result of actual harbour dues being higher than projected in the company’s bid. This provision was necessary as the scale of harbour dues payable was unknown at the time of the subsidy competition, not least because some new facilities were still to be constructed. From April 2004 the figures are notional as the support to NorthLink was provided through a single monthly payment without a specific sum hypothecated for material change.

  The payments related to Scrabster Harbour delays were intended to meet some of the costs faced by NorthLink as a result of the delay in the completion of the new pier at Scrabster, including the costs of laying up the new vessel for that route and chartering a replacement for a period of approximately six months.

  The lease/loan payments were made in September 2004 and were aimed at paying off, in one instalment, a loan which NorthLink had entered into and leases related to some of the assets used by NorthLink. As a result, the Scottish Executive secured control of these assets for use in the follow-on contract. These payments also served to reduce the total level of support which NorthLink required as they involved interest payment savings.

  The additional funding line aims to present the additional funding that has been provided to NorthLink, over and above the other categories, to maintain its delivery of the lifeline services. However, this category has also been the source of funding to cover other items that could have been the subject of a material change claim under the terms of the grant agreement. For example, the grant agreement provided for NorthLink to bear the first 10% of any increase in fuel prices over the benchmark April 2000 figure. No material change claim for additional grant under this heading was made by the company before the funding system was changed in 2004. However, the company estimates that, up to 31 July 2005, it would have been entitled to approximately £2.2 million to cover the increase in fuel prices over the 10% margin stipulated in the grant agreement. Allowing for this figure would reduce the additional funding awarded to NorthLink over the period October 2002 to July 2005 to £14,372,732. There are also, for example, legal costs associated with the consideration of the applicability of the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981 (TUPE) to the transfer of staff to NorthLink and costs arising from the outcome of the TUPE Employment Tribunal decision that fall into the same category.

Ferry Services

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what annual subsidy it had agreed to pay to NorthLink Ferries in each year from 2002 to 2007, prior to the commencement of the current Northern Isles ferry tender.

Tavish Scott: The grant agreement of December 2000 between the Scottish Executive and NorthLink Orkney and Shetland Ferries Ltd provided for basic grant payments, expressed in April 2000 prices, as follows:

  October 2002 to September 2003 - £10.773 million

  October 2003 to September 2004 - £9.662 million

  October 2004 to September 2005 - £9.250 million

  October 2005 to September 2006 - £8.139 million

  October 2006 to September 2007 - £7.828 million.

  However, the agreement provided for these figures to be uprated in line with inflation and also made provision for extra payments to be made to the company principally to cover cost factors which were unknown at the time of the contract award and to cover cost increases (egg in fuel prices) that were beyond the control of the operator.

Ferry Services

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much it spent on the administration costs of the previous Northern Isles ferry tendering process.

Tavish Scott: The core work on the previous Northern Isles ferry tendering process (which culminated in an award of contract to NorthLink Orkney and Shetland Ferries Limited in December 2000) was carried out by a team based in the Transport Group of what is now the Scottish Executive Enterprise, Transport and Lifelong Learning Department. However, inputs to the work were made by senior officials in Transport Group and by staff in a range of policy and professional divisions across the Scottish Office/Scottish Executive. It is not possible to quantify the staff costs incurred on this work by such officials as work on the tendering exercise represented only one element of their duties. On similar grounds, it is not possible to cost the ministerial involvement in the process. However, on the basis of the staff costs of the core team (without any allowance for general Scottish Office/Scottish Executive overheads relating, for example, to accommodation costs), it is estimated that a total of £100,000 (in outturn prices) was spent on the exercise broken down as follows:

  Staffing - £86,000

  Travel and Subsistence Expenses for Officials - £ 1,000

  External Advice - £13,000.

Ferry Services

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much it has spent to date on the administration costs of re-tendering on the Northern Isles ferry contract.

Tavish Scott: The core work on the current Northern Isles ferry tendering process is being carried out by a team based in the Transport Group of the Scottish Executive Enterprise, Transport and Lifelong Learning Department. However, inputs to the work are being made by senior officials in Transport Group and by staff in a range of policy and professional divisions across the Scottish Executive. It is not possible to quantify the staff costs incurred on this work by such officials as work on the tendering exercise represents only one element of their duties. On similar grounds, it is not possible to cost the ministerial involvement in the process. However, on the basis of the staff costs of the core team (without any allowance for general Scottish Executive overheads relating, for example, to accommodation costs), it is estimated that a total of £242,100 (in outturn prices) has been spent on the exercise up to 31 July 2005 broken down as follows:

  Staff Costs - £84,000

  Travel and Subsistence - £2,700

  Consultation - £400

  External Advice - £145,000

  Advertising - £10,000.

Ferry Services

Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what it estimates the total administration costs will be of re-tendering the Northern Isles ferry contract.

Tavish Scott: The total administration costs that will be associated with the re-tendering of the contract cannot be estimated with any degree of precision at this stage of a complex procurement process.

Flood Prevention

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to change the legislative framework for the approval of flood prevention proposals.

Rhona Brankin: The Executive gave a commitment in the recent White Paper, Modernising the Planning System , that consideration will be given to improving the interaction between the planning process and the statutory procedures for flood prevention schemes. The Executive has asked the Flooding Issues Advisory Committee (FIAC), to consider this matter and the workings of the Flood Prevention (Scotland) Act 1961 more generally. Any proposals from FIAC to amend legislation will require careful consideration by the Executive and would be subject to consultation with stakeholders.

Flood Prevention

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it has offered to local authorities in respect of public inquiries into flood prevention schemes.

Rhona Brankin: There is no Scottish Executive guidance relating specifically to inquiries into flood prevention schemes. However, Scottish Office Development Department Circular 17/1998, Planning and Compulsory Purchase Order Inquiries and Hearings: Procedures and Good Practice incorporates at Annex A the Code of Practice for Planning and Compulsory Purchase Inquiries , available on the Scottish Executive website at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/1998/10/circular-17-1998-root/circular-17-1998 . the case of a public local inquiry into a flood prevention scheme, the reporter normally seeks the agreement of all parties to apply the code of practice, by analogy, to the inquiry.

Flood Prevention

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has received from local authorities and other interested parties in respect of flood prevention schemes.

Rhona Brankin: The Scottish Executive receives a range of correspondence from local authorities and other interested parties about flood prevention schemes which may be promoted by local authorities. During the statutory process for confirmation under the Flood Prevention (Scotland) Act 1961, representations may be received from local authorities in support of their application and/or from interested parties who, usually, are objecting to the application.

  Currently, the Executive is in receipt of representations from Moray Council, City of Glasgow Council and East Ayrshire Council in support of applications for confirmation of flood prevention schemes at; respectively, Forres, White Cart and Galston. A number of objections to the confirmation of these schemes have been received from interested parties. On 8 September, I announced in my answer to question S2W-19067 that we are inviting representations from interested parties on the terms of proposed modifications to the City of Edinburgh Council’s Water of Leith Flood Prevention Scheme in light of the findings of a public local inquiry. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search engine for which can be found at:

  http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Foster Care

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many fostering households (a) there are and (b) are required in each local authority area.

Robert Brown: The information requested is not held centrally.

  However, the Scottish Executive is currently collecting information about the number of foster carers and any shortfall of foster carers in each local authority area in order to evaluate the impact of the extra £12 million in funding being provided to improve local authority fostering services.

General Medical Services

Helen Eadie (Dunfermline East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether osteoporosis has been included in the Quality and Outcomes Framework of the General Medical Services contract.

Mr Andy Kerr: Osteoporosis has not previously been included in the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF).

  There is currently a review of the QOF which is being carried out as part of the UK wide review of the General Medical Services contract. The outcome of this review is not yet known and it is therefore not possible to confirm at this time what will be included in the revised Quality and Outcomes Framework.

Health

Mrs Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost of establishing the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) was; what the operating costs of the SMC were in (a) 2002, (b) 2003 and (c) 2004, and what the projected costs are for (i) 2005 and (ii) 2006.

Mr Andy Kerr: This information is contained in the following table.

  

2001-02
£152,713


2002-03
£308,120


2003-04
£338,611


2004-05
£460,546


2005-06
£743,952


2006-07
Budget not yet agreed.



  The costs above cover staff costs, and other related non-staff costs including stationery, training and legal costs. They do not include any overheads, for example accommodation, IT support, and personnel which are provided by NHS Quality Improvement Scotland.

  The increases in costs reflect the development of the organisation and growing workload over time. This includes greater emphasis on looking forward at possible future developments and supporting implementation of SMC recommendations across the NHS.

Health

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the single electronic patient record system will link with the system in England and Wales.

Mr Andy Kerr: There are regular meetings between colleagues working on eHealth systems for Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland. An important objective of these meetings is to ensure that information can be shared between these countries effectively. We intend to establish links between the evolving single record systems for the countries of the UK and this will be facilitated by the shared use of common information and technical standards, clinical dictionaries and coding standards and patient identifiers.

Health

Helen Eadie (Dunfermline East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many hip fractures there were in (a) 1999, (b) 2000, (c) 2001, (d) 2002 and (e) 2003.

Lewis Macdonald: The number of patients admitted to hospitals in Scotland with a principal diagnosis of hip fracture in these years is shown in the following table. Comprehensive information on hip fractures is available through the Scottish Hip Fracture Audit pages on Scotland’s Health on the Web at http://www.show.scot.nhs.uk/shfa/ .

  

Year
Hip Fractures


1999
7,069


2000
6,878


2001
6,920


2002
7,052


2003
7,047

Health

Helen Eadie (Dunfermline East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether NHS Quality Improvement Scotland has published guidance on delivering an integrated falls and osteoporosis service.

Mr Andy Kerr: NHS Quality Improvement Scotland (NHS QIS) has not published specific guidance on delivering an integrated falls and osteoporosis service. The issues were referred to in the National Overview Older People in Acute Care, published in February 2004 (Bib. number 31248). NHS QIS also issued in Scotland the NICE technology appraisal, on Drugs for the secondary prevention of osteoporotic fragility fractures in postmenopausal women , in January 2005.

  In addition, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is working on two other relevant appraisals which NHS QIS will assess and provide advice on to NHSScotland when they are published. These are:

  The primary prevention of osteoporotic fragility fractures in postmenopausal women and,

  The use of strontium ranelate for the treatment of osteoporotic fractures in postmenopausal women.

Housing (Scotland) Act 2001

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether registered social landlords (RSL) can refuse to house a prospective tenant referred to them by their local authority under section 5 of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 and, if so, what reasons for refusal would be considered to be valid.

Malcolm Chisholm: Section 5 of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 requires that an RSL must comply, within a reasonable period, a local authority’s request to provide accommodation for a homeless household, which is unintentionally homeless with a priority need, unless it has good reason not to. Section 5 also requires that the accommodation must be a Scottish secure tenancy (or in cases of anti-social behaviour a short Scottish secure tenancy) unless an express request for other accommodation has been made by the local authority.

  Scottish ministers have issued guidance on what constitutes "good reason" for refusal of a request. This states where RSLs are unable to make appropriate accommodation available within six weeks then it has good reason for non-compliance. A RSL also has a good reason for non-compliance if the only accommodation it has available is of a specialist nature and this is not appropriate for the applicant.

Justice

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many reports of (a) murder, (b) culpable homicide, (c) assault to severe injury, (d) assault and (e) offences involving the possession of a bladed weapon have been referred to the Procurator Fiscal at Ayr in each of the last five years.

Colin Boyd QC: The information requested is set out in the following table . Information is not available for periods prior to April 2002 1 .

  Number of Charges Reported to the Procurator Fiscal at Ayr2,3

  

Charge Group
2002-03
2003-04
2004-05
Grand Total


 Murder
0
1
4
5


Culpable Homicide
1
0
0
1


Assault to Severe Injury4
93
101
147
341


Assault4
1,156
1,137
1,635
3,928


Possession of a Bladed Weapon5
128
77
77
282



  Notes:

  1. The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service completed an upgrade of its electronic case management system in April 2002. Only case records created after that date contain complete data which is capable of electronic analysis. If a Procurator Fiscal amends a charge submitted by a reporting agency the database will record details only of the amended charge.

  2. The information in this table has been extracted from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service’s Case Management Database. The database is a live, operational database used to manage the processing of reports submitted to procurators fiscal by the police and other reporting agencies.

  3. The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service’s Case Management Database is charge-based. The figures in the table therefore relate to the number of charges rather than the number of incidents that gave rise to such charges.

  4. There are 124 separate charge codes containing the word "assault". The results in this table are restricted to the following charges: Assault includes - assault; assault injury. Assault to Severe Injury includes - assault to danger of life; assault disfigurement; assault severe injury; assault severe injury and danger of life; assault to severe injury, disfigurement; assault to severe injury, disfigurement, danger of life; assault to severe injury, disfigurement, impairment; assault to severe injury, impairment; assault to severe injury, impairment, danger of life.

  5. The results in the table are restricted to offences under the following sections of the Criminal Law Consolidation (Scotland) Act 1995 – Section 49 (possession of a knife), Section 49A (possession of a knife in school premises), and Section 47 (possession of an offensive weapon). Charges under section 47 have only been included where the weapon in question was a knife, an axe, scissors or an open blade razor.

Justice

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will announce which courts will have television links for witnesses.

Cathy Jamieson: Facilities for evidence to be relayed by live TV link, in support of the provisions of the Vulnerable Witnesses (Scotland) Act 2004, including a link remote from the courthouse in which the case is being heard, are installed in 22 court sites across Scotland. The respective sites are detailed on the Scottish Court Service website at:

  http://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/resources/courtroomtech/courtroomtech.asp?dir=home.

  This provision is supplemented by portable equipment capable of being applied in other court locations.

  The 2004 act also allows for links to be made to non-court buildings and a permanent site for this purpose has been set up in Falkirk. Working with the Scottish Executive’s Victims and Witnesses Unit, the Scottish Court Service is now looking to secure similar sites in each sheriffdom situated near the centres of population.

  The specific needs of those in rural and remote locations is also being addressed. The Scottish Court Service is negotiating with appropriate local authorities and academic institutions to use their existing video-conferencing facilities to set up live TV links on an ad-hoc basis in order to minimise the distances to be travelled by witnesses.

Justice

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what requirements have been specified in respect of the provision of television links for witnesses in court.

Cathy Jamieson: The Vulnerable Witnesses (Scotland) Act 2004 introduces additional provisions for evidence via television link.

  The Scottish Executive is currently working with the Scottish Court Service to ensure facilities are in place to meet those requirements. This includes the need to facilitate the giving of evidence by TV link from a location outwith the court building where evidence in the case is being heard.

Justice

Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will introduce or support the introduction of an offence of corporate killing.

Cathy Jamieson: In April I established an Expert Group on Corporate Homicide to review the law in Scotland on corporate liability for culpable homicide. The group have provided me with an interim report. I hope to receive their final report by the end of October. As I have previously indicated, if reform of this area of the law is required we will bring forward proposals.

NHS Expenditure

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what estimate it has made of the rate of inflation for non-wage-related costs within NHS Scotland.

Mr Andy Kerr: Details of the estimated increase in non-wage-related costs within NHS Scotland are given in Table 5.04 of the draft Budget 2006-07, copies of which are available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 37351).

NHS Expenditure

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what estimate it has made of the rate of inflation for wage-related costs within NHS Scotland.

Mr Andy Kerr: Details of the estimated increase in wage-related costs within NHS Scotland are given in Table 5.04 of the Draft Budget 2006-07, copies of which are available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 37351).

NHS Hospitals

Mr Bruce McFee (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many NHS operations on patients from the Inverclyde Royal Hospital catchment area have taken place in Ross Hall Hospital in each year since 1999, broken down by type of operation.

Mr Andy Kerr: The information requested is not held centrally.

National Health Service

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the projected number of monthly deliveries at the Simpson Centre for Reproductive Health is up to the end of February 2006.

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide a monthly breakdown of the full-time-equivalent number of (a) hospital-based and (b) community-based midwives at the Simpson Centre for Reproductive Health since it opened at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary.

Lewis Macdonald: This is a matter for NHS Lothian. This information requested is not held centrally.

National Lottery

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much funding from the National Lottery was directed to projects by the Executive in each of the last five years, broken down by project.

Patricia Ferguson: The distribution of National Lottery funds is a matter for the Lottery Distribution Bodies: Scottish Arts Council, Scottish Screen,  sportscotland, Big Lottery Fund and Heritage Lottery Fund. The information requested is not held centrally by the Executive.

  The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) maintains an electronic database of National Lottery awards. Details of the total awarded to each constituency area and each local authority area for each Lottery good cause can be obtained through the DCMS website at:

  http://www.lottery.culture.gov.uk/search.asp.

Non-Domestic Rates

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much has been raised in business rates in each of the last six years, broken down by local authority.

Mr Tom McCabe: I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-17228 on 17 June 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Police Complaints

Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will establish a fully independent police complaints body similar to that now operating in England and, if so, when.

Cathy Jamieson: I will bring forward proposals to establish a new Police Complaints Commissioner for Scotland in the forthcoming Police, Public Order and Criminal Justice (Scotland) Bill.

  In developing our thinking, we have looked at arrangements south of the Border, as well as in Northern Ireland and further afield, with a view to learning as much as possible from the experience of others.

  The new commissioner will bring greater transparency and robust independent scrutiny to the police complaints system, building on the high standards the Scottish public have a right to expect from our modern police service.

Prison Service

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what research or data is available to assess whether prisoners suffer from autistic spectrum disorder.

Cathy Jamieson: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  No national data is currently available. Detecting autism is complex. The SPS prefer to focus on assessing need in order to address and support any identified functional need, rather than to try to make such diagnoses. The Scottish Prison Service is drawing together local studies to identify and address the needs of prisoners with learning disabilities.

Rail Network

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider any request from the promoters of the Waverley Line for additional funding.

Tavish Scott: Any request for additional funding by the Waverley Railway Partnership will be considered on its merits by the Scottish Executive.

Rail Network

Mrs Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average train journey time was from (a) Aberdeen to Edinburgh and (b) Edinburgh to Aberdeen in each of the last six years, broken down by month.

Tavish Scott: The information requested is not held by the Scottish Executive. However, First ScotRail has provided information on average journey times for Aberdeen to Edinburgh services reflecting the averages during the summer and winter timetables for each of the last six years. It has not been possible to provide information broken down by month.

  

 
Aberdeen - Edinburgh
Edinburgh - Aberdeen


Summer 1999
2hr 32mins
2hr 33mins


Winter 1999
2hr 30mins
2hr 31mins


Summer 2000
2hr 26mins
2hr 29mins


Winter 2000
2hr 24mins
2hr 27mins


Summer 2001
2hr 26mins
2hr 27mins


Winter 2001
2hr 24mins
2hr 27mins


Summer 2002
2hr 26mins
2hr 27mins


Winter 2002
2hr 25mins
2hr 27mins


Summer 2003
2hr 26mins
2hr 27mins


Winter 2003
2hr 25mins 
2hr 27mins


Summer 2004
2hr 25mins
2hr 27mins


Winter 2004
2hr 25mins
2hr 26mins


Summer 2005
2hr 27mins
2hr 27mins

Rail Network

Mrs Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many rail passengers travelled from (a) Aberdeen to Edinburgh and (b) Edinburgh to Aberdeen in each of the last six years, broken down by month.

Tavish Scott: Information relating to passenger numbers is collected by the train operating companies using this route - GNER and First ScotRail. Information on passenger numbers on particular routes is considered to be commercially confidential.

Rail Network

Mrs Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in achieving higher standards of performance for the rail service between Aberdeen and Edinburgh.

Tavish Scott: I would refer the member to the answers given to questions S2W-19033 and S2W-19034 answered on 20 September 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

  http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Rail Network

Mrs Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in improving punctuality and reliability of rail services between Aberdeen and Edinburgh.

Tavish Scott: Rail services between Aberdeen and Edinburgh are provided by both First ScotRail and GNER. Punctuality and reliability of First ScotRail services is measured on performance in seven Service Groups. In the Express Group, which includes the Aberdeen to Edinburgh service, punctuality has increased to 91.9% within 10 minutes of the scheduled arrival time compared with 82.4% in the same period in 2004-5. The average over the last 12 months has been 89.6%.

  In terms of reliability, 99.4% of trains ran on time in the most recent period reported on (24 July to 20 August) compared with 98% in the same period last year.

Rail Network

Mrs Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans there are to improve passenger safety and comfort, including higher standards of cleanliness, security and travel information, on trains between Aberdeen and Edinburgh.

Tavish Scott: The Executive intends shortly to extend the Service Quality Incentive Regime, which has been successful in raising service standards elsewhere, to the services between Aberdeen and Edinburgh. As well as checking levels of cleanliness, the regime looks to ensure that up-to-date travel information is displayed as appropriate on trains. Additionally, the Executive is committed to a programme of installation of CCTV on all of the ScotRail fleet to address security concerns.

Rail Network

Mrs Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what improvements it plans to make to (a) Aberdeen, (b) Arbroath, (c) Broughty Ferry, (d) Carnoustie, (e) Dundee, (f) Huntly, (g) Keith, (h) Montrose, (i) Monifeith, (j) Portlethen and (k) Stonehaven railway stations.

Tavish Scott: The franchise agreement contains a commitment by First ScotRail to a programme of improvements at stations worth over £10 million. This will benefit all of the stations listed over the course of the franchise.

  There is a particular commitment to investment at Aberdeen station as this is one of the four major stations requiring significant station improvements. Over £1.124 million has been set aside by First ScotRail for work at Aberdeen Station.

  The programme of works is subject to change over time, but information on the improvements planned is set out in the following table. The major works at Aberdeen must be completed by the fifth anniversary of the franchise though the works may be brought forward to take account of a development scheme in the city centre. The investments planned for other stations are over 2005 and 2006.

  

Station
Improvements Planned


Aberdeen
Improvements will include the provision of a heated waiting facility incorporating around 70 seats on the concourse and a sleeper lounge. There will also be improved disabled access through the installation of a lift to the footbridge to the southbound platform. Other improvements planned at Aberdeen station include CCTV installation, additional seating and totem signs.


Arbroath
Additional seating


Broughty Ferry
Installation of interchange shelter, cycle storage and help points


Carnoustie
Installation of shelter/canopy and public telephone


Dundee
CCTV installation, additional seating, totem signs and installation of interchange shelter


Huntly
Additional seating and signage


Keith
Cycle storage, signage and help points


Montrose
Installation of shelter/canopy, additional seating, totem signs and help points


Monifeith
Additional seating, cycle storage, signage and help points


Portlethen
Additional seating, cycle storage, totem signs, signage, help points, car park lighting and white lining to car park


Stonehaven
Installation of interchange shelter, additional seating, help points and car park lighting

Rail Network

Mrs Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in tackling ticket fraud on trains between Aberdeen and Edinburgh.

Tavish Scott: Ticket barriers have been installed at Edinburgh Waverley and Haymarket. There are also peak hours checks of tickets at Aberdeen and Dundee stations. First ScotRail are also required by the franchise agreement to ensure that there is a member of staff on every train whose duties include the checking and sale of tickets.

  Revenue protection is monitored through a specific franchise management meeting. While First ScotRail are confident that ticketless travel has been reduced further actions have to be taken and there will be a need to evaluate the impact of the revenue protection plan. Progress will be monitored throughout the franchise but revenue information is commercially confidential and changes in revenue can occur for a number of reasons.

Rail Network

Mrs Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what anti-ticket-fraud equipment and/or procedures have been put into place at (a) Aberdeen, (b) Arbroath, (c) Broughty Ferry, (d) Carnoustie, (e) Dundee, (f) Huntly, (g) Keith, (h) Montrose, (i) Monifeith, (j) Portlethen and (k) Stonehaven railway stations.

Tavish Scott: It is a requirement of the franchise agreement that the franchisee have in place plans to minimise the level of ticketless travel and fare evasion across the Scottish rail network, at stations and on trains.

  First ScotRail are currently developing revised on-train ticket checking and selling instructions to create a consistent level of ticket checking in the routes serving the stations listed. At Aberdeen and Dundee stations First ScotRail are already required to have sufficient fare collecting staff to check each passengers ticket at the station during peak hours. Ticketing barriers will be installed at these stations within the next year and three new revenue management positions have recently been introduced on the Aberdeen to Edinburgh route.

Rail Network

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will decide whether to support financially the next stage of the pre-tendering process for a dynamic loop on the Glasgow to Kilmarnock railway line at Stewarton and Dunlop.

Tavish Scott: The Scottish Executive has not received a request to support the next stage of this project.

Residential Care

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many respite day care places there were in residential homes in each local authority area in each year since 1999.

Lewis Macdonald: This information is not held centrally.

Road Accidents

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many road traffic accidents resulting in (a) injury and (b) fatality there have been on the A77 within the South Ayrshire local authority area in each of the last five years.

Tavish Scott: The information requested is provided in the following table.

  

Year
Fatal
Serious
Slight
Total


2000
2
15
33
50


2001
1
12
40
53


2002
3
17
33
53


2003
4
11
45
60


2004
4
9
37
50


Total
14
64
188
266

Road Accidents

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many road traffic accidents resulting in (a) injury and (b) fatality there have been on the A70 within the South Ayrshire and East Ayrshire local authority areas in each of the last five years.

Tavish Scott: Data about injury road accidents are collected by the police and reported to the Scottish Executive using the STATS 19 statistical report form. These returns cover only road accidents in which one or more people were injured: they do not cover damage only accidents.

  The following table gives the numbers of such accidents which were identified in the STATS 19 returns as occurring on the A70 in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004, and those that had at least one fatality.

  It should be noted that the statistics given below are based upon the data which are held in the central statistical database and which were collected by the police at the time of the accident and subsequently reported to the Executive. They may differ from any figures which the local authorities would provide now, because they do not take account of any subsequent changes or corrections that local authorities may have made to the statistical information, for use at local level, about the location of each accident, based upon their knowledge of the roads and areas concerned.

  Injury Road Accidents on the A70 in South Ayrshire and East Ayrshire

  


2000
2001
2002
2003
2004


South Ayrshire 
All injury road accidents
20
15
8
17
11


of which: Fatal accidents
0
1
0
0
2


East Ayrshire 
All injury road accidents
20
17
24
19
16


of which: Fatal accidents
0
2
0
0
1

Roads

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it updates its trunk road programme on a (a) regular and (b) monthly basis and whether it will place in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre details of each of the programmes it has prepared since inception.

Tavish Scott: I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-18471 on 13 September 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Roads

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-18357 by Tavish Scott on 5 September 2005, why the publication of the Executive summary of the A6091/A7 Route Action Plan Study has been delayed from the publication date of autumn 2002, referred to in the answer to question S1W-28234 by Lewis Macdonald on 2 September 2002.

Tavish Scott: The answer given to S2W-18357 was that the findings of the A6091/A7 Route Action Plan (RAP) Study would be published following the outcome of the review of all outstanding RAP schemes. The review was completed in November 2002 however, as only one of the 13 schemes recommended in the RAP emerged from the review, the RAP study was not published. The successful schemes which emerged from the review were announced in a press release in March 2003.

Rural Development

Mr Jim Wallace (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what funding has been provided in this financial year to each local authority for the development and support of core paths.

Rhona Brankin: In the current financial year, £8.1 million was included in the local government settlement in recognition of the responsibilities of local authorities under the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003. This provision is included in the total for the "Remaining Leisure and Recreation" line of Grant Aided Expenditure (GAE). In 2005-06 the total for this line was £66.6 million and this was allocated between authorities in accordance with the distribution formula for that line. GAE provisions are not budgets or spending targets, but form part of the local government funding formula used to calculate a single revenue grant figure for each council. It is up to local authority to decide how best to allocate resources based on local needs and priorities.

Rural Development

Mr Jim Wallace (Orkney) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive on what basis funding for the development and support of core paths is shared out between local authorities.

Rhona Brankin: Within the current Spending Round, provision has been included in the "Remainder of Leisure and Recreation" Grant Aided Expenditure (GAE) line in recognition of the responsibilities of local authorities under the access provisions of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003.

  The formulae for distribution of the local government funding settlement are the subject of consultation and agreement between the Executive and COSLA. The GAE line referred to here is allocated on the basis of the adjusted population of each council in Scotland and makes allowance for residents, commuters and tourists.

  There is no ring-fenced allocation or budget for individual local authorities’ responsibilities under the access legislation. It is a matter for each local authority to determine how to allocate the resources available to it according to its own needs and priorities.

School Curriculum

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps are being taken to embed Scottish culture and history in the school curriculum.

Peter Peacock: Approaches to the teaching of Scottish culture and history fall within the environmental studies and expressive arts areas of the curriculum. The National Guidelines on Environmental Studies 5-14 advise that an understanding of the past should be developed through studies that include attention to Scottish, British, European and global contexts. The guidelines on Expressive Arts 5-14 include the aim of promoting an awareness of cultural heritage, values and diversity by encouraging recognition and understanding of cultural inheritance, traditions and values, and making comparisons with other groups and cultures. The 5-14 guidelines for English language and Personal and Social Development also stress the importance of maintaining a focus on the Scottish context. The guidelines are not specific about the precise aspects of Scottish culture and history to be studied.

  As students move onto upper secondary school education, there are opportunities within a range of National Qualifications courses to study topics related to Scottish culture and history. For example, the Highland clearances may be studied within the 1830s to 1930s option at Standard Grade and "Nation and King" within the Higher History course covers the Scottish Wars of Independence.

  Ambitious Excellent Schools sets out our agenda for the modernisation of education in Scotland. The purposes for education in A Curriculum for Excellence set out clearly the need for young people to develop knowledge and understanding of the world and Scotland’s place in it. Learning about Scottish culture and history makes a major contribution to achieving our aims for young people and will be reflected in the developing curricular framework.

School Curriculum

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps are being taken to include the works of Robert Burns in the national curriculum.

Peter Peacock: There is no statutory national curriculum in Scotland. Approaches to the teaching of Scottish literature fall within the English Language Guidelines 5-14. The guidance stresses the importance of Scottish writing and writing about Scotland taking its place beside English literature in permeating the curriculum from an early stage. This provides the opportunity to examine critically the ideas, beliefs and emotions of Scottish writers, and to set them against the different insights and perspectives of writers from other places and other times. The guidelines are not specific about which works or Scottish writers are to be studied.

  As students move onto upper secondary school education, teachers are urged to take advantage of as many opportunities of studying and using the Scottish tongue in most of the component units in the levels from Access 3 to Higher. In the Higher English course, for example, the work of Robert Burns could be chosen by candidates to write a critical essay in which they must demonstrate the ability to understand, analyse and evaluate a writer they have studied.

  Ambitious Excellent Schools sets out our agenda for the modernisation of education in Scotland. The purposes for education in A Curriculum for Excellence set out clearly the need for young people to develop knowledge and understanding of the world and Scotland’s place in it. Learning about Scottish literature therefore makes a major contribution to achieving our aims for young people and will be reflected in the developing curricular framework.

School Curriculum

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what funding is available for the development of educational resources for the teaching of Scottish literature and the works of Robert Burns at both primary and secondary school levels.

Peter Peacock: The Scottish Executive provides Learning and Teaching Scotland (LTS) with core funding part of which is directed towards supporting Scots language and literacy in Scottish schools. This funding has for example enabled LTS to develop resources such as a Tam O’Shanter CD-ROM and an electronic resource on Edwin Morgan’s poetry.

  Funding is also available from the Scottish Arts Council who support such projects as: Itchy Coo, a Scottish story book publishing company; BRAW (Books, Reading and Writing), a Scottish Book Trust initiative with an aim of getting books, particularly Scottish into schools and Live Literature Scotland (LLS), a unique funding scheme which takes Scottish writers, playwrights, poets, storytellers and their work to every corner of Scottish society.

Scottish Executive Buildings

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the current status is of the project to redevelop Parliament House in Edinburgh.

Cathy Jamieson: A comprehensive review of the options for the redevelopment of Parliament House has been underway since December 2004, when the project was halted. The Scottish Court Service has now agreed an interim approach, which involves criminal appeal business moving from Parliament House to the nearby building at Lawnmarket, and other criminal business being accommodated in Lawnmarket and Edinburgh Sheriff Court. This will ensure better security arrangements for criminal business in the short term, and will enable backlog maintenance and upgrade work to continue in Parliament House itself. An announcement on the long-term plan for Parliament House will be made in due course.

Scottish Executive Buildings

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the options appraisal carried out by the Scottish Courts Service into the redevelopment of Parliament House in Edinburgh is now complete and when an update will be provided.

Cathy Jamieson: After extensive consultation with stakeholders, the options appraisal has led to the interim approach outlined in my answer to question S2W-18643 on 20 September 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search . Further evaluation of the long-term options is still underway.

Scottish Executive Buildings

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what form of building contract was procured for the project to redevelop Parliament House in Edinburgh.

Cathy Jamieson: The building contract for the Parliament House redevelopment project was procured under the SBCC Scottish Management Contract (Phased Completion).

Scottish Executive Expenditure

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-7664 by Mr Jack McConnell on 18 July 2000, what fuel costs it has incurred in each year since 1999, broken down into (a) electricity, (b) gas and (c) liquid fuel.

Mr Tom McCabe: The fuel costs incurred by the Scottish Office from 1 April 1999 to 1 July 1999 and for the Scottish Executive from 1 July 1999 to 31 March 2005 are as follows:

  

Year
Electricity
Gas
Liquid Fuel
Total all Fuel


1999-2000
£552,961
£159,460
£65,240
£777,661


2000-01
£566,760
£127,478
£77,249
£771,487


2001-02
£502,573
£120,626
£98,953
£722,152


2002-03
£592,545
£131,963
£18,618
£743,126


2003-04
£562,946
£156,656
£25,346
£744,948


2004-05
£529,336
£261,209
£54,652
£845,197

Scottish Executive Finance

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide a breakdown of what the 2007-08 allocation of £100,975,000, shown under the "Departmental Unallocated Provision" category in table 5.03 of its Draft Budget 2006-07, will be used for.

Mr Tom McCabe: The "Departmental Unallocated Funding" is held in reserve to meet any pressures arising between the spending review 2004 settlement and 2007-08. It has not yet been allocated for any specific purpose.

Scottish Executive Finance

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much of its efficiency savings will be (a) cash releasing and (b) non-cash releasing in each of the next three years.

Mr Tom McCabe: The Scottish Executive defines efficiency savings as either "cash releasing" or "time releasing". A cash release saving is where an efficiency measure generates an actual resource saving because the organisation or function delivers the same service with less money. Time release savings are defined as efficiencies which do not release cash but allow frontline services to deliver more or better services with the same money.

  The revised Efficiency Technical Notes published on 6 September show that we have identified cash savings of £407 million and time savings of £88 million in 2005-06, cash savings of £647 million and time savings of £198 million in 2006-07 and cash savings of £912 million and time savings of £337 million in 2007-08. We will continue to work to identify more savings over coming months.

  Efficiency Technical Notes: (http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/09/0895455/54558).

Scottish Schools (Parental Involvement) Bill

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-16434 by Peter Peacock on 18 May 2005, when it will publish its analysis of the responses to the consultation on the Scottish Schools (Parental Involvement) Bill.

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S2W-16434 and S2W-17402 by Peter Peacock on 10 May and 27 June 2005 respectively, whether the majority of responses to the consultation on the Scottish Schools (Parental Involvement) Bill favoured reform or retention of school boards or whether they recommended their abolition.

Peter Peacock: I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-18441 on 8 September 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Social Services

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how the proposed EU Services Directive will increase competition in the provision of social services.

Robert Brown: The regulation of international trade is a reserved matter. However, the Scottish Executive continues to be in regular contact with DTI and other Government Departments on trade issues, including the EU Services Directive negotiations, to ensure that Scottish interests are fully taken account of.

  The Services Directive aims to break down barriers to cross border trade in services between EU member states by making it easier for providers to establish themselves and offer services in other member states by removing unnecessary regulation and bureaucracy. It also seeks to enable operators to provide services temporarily and/ or at a distance into other member states based on the rules in their country of origin.

  The Scottish Executive supports the UK position that while publicly-funded health and social care services should not be covered by the Directive it can (with appropriate derogations from the Country of Origin principle), besafely and constructively applied to health and social care services from the independent sector. Which operate outside the context of a publicly-funded system.

Sport

Michael Matheson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much financial assistance has been given to (a) badminton, (b) bowls, (c) boxing, (d) squash, (e) triathlon, (f) table tennis and (g) weightlifting in each of the last five years.

Patricia Ferguson: The information requested is published in  sportscotland’s annual reports and Lottery Fund annual reports, copies of which have been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. numbers 11114, 16964, 24679, 29689 and 34386 for the annual reports and Bib. numbers 9761, 17131, 24952, 29688 and 37441 for the lottery fund annual reports). The reports for 2004-05 are being prepared and copies will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre in due course. Copies of the documents can also be found on  sportscotland’s website at: www.sportscotland.org.uk .

Tourism

Chris Ballance (South of Scotland) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what the value was of bookings taken by visitscotland.com for tourist providers in Dumfries and Galloway and what percentage of total Scottish bookings taken this represented in the (a) first eighteen months of visitscotland.com’s operation and (b) most recent six months for which figures are available.

Patricia Ferguson: The value of bookings made through visitscotland.com for tourist providers in the Dumfries and Galloway area in the first eighteen months of its operation was £88,000. This business represented 2% of all bookings made through visitscotland.com. during this period. The value of bookings made during the period January and June 2005 was £130,000, which represented 3% of all Scottish bookings made through vistscotland.com. The latter figure is broadly in line with the proportion of Scottish tourism value accounted for by the area.

Tourism

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-7657 by Henry McLeish on 20 June 2000, what fuel costs have been incurred by VisitScotland and its predecessor and each area tourist board in each year since 1999.

Patricia Ferguson: This is an operational matter for VisitScotland. I will ask the Chief Executive of VisitScotland to write to you on this matter.

Transport

Derek Brownlee (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what criteria it uses to assess requests for additional funding for capital construction costs in respect of transport infrastructure.

Tavish Scott: The Scottish Executive considers such requests on a case by case basis. It takes into consideration all relevant factors including whether the scheme still represents value for money; whether the original objectives of the scheme would still be met; the extent to which the increases are due to factors that could not reasonably have been foreseen at the time of the original funding award; the ability and contractual liabilities of the grant recipient and other parties to contribute towards the cost increases, and the impact of the additional costs on other projects.

Transport

Colin Fox (Lothians) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has made for an integrated transport strategy for the Dalkeith area.

Tavish Scott: An integrated transport strategy for the Dalkeith area is a matter for Midlothian Council and could be addressed in its local transport strategy. Broader transportation issues will be addressed by the South East Scotland Transport Partnership’s regional transport strategy and the forthcoming National Transport Strategy.

Water Supply

Mr Mark Ruskell (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive which areas in Scotland (a) have undergone and (b) will undergo a change in the treatment of drinking water from hypochlorination to chloramination and when each change is scheduled to take place.

Rhona Brankin: Scottish Water has changed the way it disinfects drinking water supplies in the following areas:

  Edinburgh and Midlothian, Aberdeen, Inverness, Borders, Perthshire, Highlands, Western Isles, Grampian and Fife.

  The change has seen a switch from chlorination to chloramination as the principal method of disinfecting the public drinking water supply in those areas. Scottish Water does not currently intend to utilise chloramination at all of its treatment works and it does not have a programme for switching to chloramination across Scotland. Chloramination is just one of several disinfection methods approved for use on public water supplies. The final choice on the disinfection method to be used at a particular site is dependent on a number of factors, the principal one being the protection of public health.

Water Supply

Mr Mark Ruskell (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what formal environmental impact assessments were carried out by Scottish Water prior to changing drinking water treatment from hypochlorination to chloramination and whether it or Scottish Water intends to publish the results of such assessments.

Rhona Brankin: Scottish Water has not carried out any formal Environmental Impact Assessments prior to changing some disinfection processes from chlorination to chloramination. Chloramination is an industry approved disinfection process that has been utilised in the UK for nearly a century.

  Scottish Water has procedures in place to ensure that any large volume discharges of treated drinking water into the environment (chlorinated or chloraminated) are dealt with appropriately to minimise any environmental effects. Such discharges are made in accordance with Section 33 of the Water (Scotland) Act 1980.

  The Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s assessment of the environmental risk from the use of chloramination showed that the risk was comparable to that from chlorine so its consenting and monitoring procedures for discharges have not changed for chloraminated waters.

Water Supply

Mr Mark Ruskell (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of the water supply is currently lost in leakage and what measures are in place to improve Scottish Water’s record of water leakage.

Rhona Brankin: As these are operational matters for Scottish Water, I have asked the Chief Executive of Scottish Water to write to you on this.

Water Supply

Mr Mark Ruskell (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive what investment levels have been proposed in the Quality and Standards III investment programme for 2006-10 to improve Scottish Water’s record of water leakage.

Rhona Brankin: Ministers set objectives for the water industry after extensive consultation. Based on the objectives specified in the statement that ministers made to Parliament in February this year, Scottish Water submitted an integrated investment programme to the Water Industry Commission (WIC) as part of the Strategic Review of Charges (SRC) process. As required under the system of independent economic regulation set up, the WIC has assessed the lowest, overall, reasonable cost of delivering ministers’ objectives and the draft determination sets out its conclusions. The consultation period ends on the 23 September with an expectation that the final determination will be published at the end of November.

  Ministers have not set Scottish Water specific objectives for the reduction of leakage. Instead, they have set objectives based upon the performance of Scottish Water’s assets according to a set of industry standard measures. They have also set further objectives. Taken as a whole, this effect is likely to bring about a reduction in the quantity of treated water lost by leakage.

Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body

Holyrood Building

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body why the doors in the MSP block at Holyrood are being replaced; how many doors are being replaced; whether it expects to have to replace more doors in the near future; what the cost implications to the taxpayer are of replacing the doors, and what the purchase price per door is, including VAT.

John Scott: The doors in the MSP block are being replaced because they have been found to be defective. Twelve doors are being replaced. Currently, there is no requirement to replace any more doors and no such requirement is envisaged in the foreseeable future. It is not anticipated that there will be any additional cost to the taxpayer. The purchase price of the replacement doors is a commercial matter for the trade contractor.

Holyrood Building

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body how long the Holyrood car park has been leaking and who is responsible for the cost of repairs.

John Scott: The first recorded notification of the car park leaking problem was in November 2004. Possible sources of the water causing the leaks are being investigated and the establishment of responsibility for the cost of repairs will form part of that investigation.

Holyrood Project

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body at which of its meetings it agreed to employ Dr John Gibbons as an architectural consultant to the Parliament on a 12-month contract valued at £34,000, as reported in the Daily Mail on 26 August 2005.

George Reid: The appointment was made on 28 April 2005 by the Clerk under delegated authority from the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body.

Holyrood Project

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body at which of its meetings it agreed to employ Dr John Gibbons as a member of the Post-Completion Advisory Group on the Holyrood Project at an estimated remuneration of £14,000, as reported in the Daily Mail on 26 August 2005.

George Reid: Dr Gibbons’ appointment was approved at the meeting of the Corporate Body on 25 May 2004.

Holyrood Project

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body where advertisements were placed for the post of architectural consultant to the Parliament.

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body how many applications were received for the post of architectural consultant to the Parliament.

George Reid: Since only Dr John Gibbons had the necessary experience and knowledge of the Holyrood Building Project that we sought, the post was not advertised.

Holyrood Project

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body which members of the Post-Completion Advisory Group were not members of the Holyrood Project Team.

George Reid: Apart from the period June – November 2000 when Dr Gibbons acted as Project Director, no members of the Post Completion Advisory Group were members of the Holyrood Project Team. Dr Gibbons, Andrew Wright and David Manson were members of the Holyrood Progress Group.